SBE member Jared Taylor was the only vote opposing the adoption of these standards and he stated, “The bottom line is that I am very disappointed that we kicked the parents to the curb and ignored the will of the voters when they elected Diane Douglas. Yet she led the way today; we just renewed Common Core.”

Several parents were shocked to read your comments in the 1-18-18 briefs. It’s obvious that you don’t understand what is really going on in Arizona’s classrooms —which is very disappointing, since you are a candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction.

You have a massive misunderstanding on the recess issue. The traditional three 15-minute recess has been eliminated in most schools across the state. Many schools are down to one 10-minute recess per day, and some have no recess at all! These are not college students. They’re young children! They need to move! Studies have shown that physical activity improves academic performance. Americans are well known for their creativity and ingenuity —unlike China where academics are all that matter. We foster entrepreneurs and inventors in the USA. Recess promotes these desirable American characteristics. Recess is correlated with improved student behavior in the classroom. Recess also promotes social skills and helps kids learn how to deal with bullying —which is the opposite of giving them “comfort lamas and safe places,” as you stated.

When does “repeal and replace” not mean “repeal and replace”? When Supt. Of Public Instruction Diane Douglas says it.

Incumbent Douglas has been cranking out media releases, including taking a recent victory lap on the anniversary of the State Board of Education’s adoption of “Common Core Rebrand #2.” Her false “Common Core has been repealed and replaced” narrative has recently appeared in Frosty Taylor’s 12/20/2017 Briefs. It also appeared in the 12/19/2017 issue of the Yellow Sheet.

For the record, the Common Core Standards haven’t been repealed or replaced. At most, they’ve been “tweaked.”

Barry Jackson, who tutors children in the East Valley, sent the following letter to Betsy Devos, United States Secretary of Education.

Dear Secretary DeVos:

For several months I have been tutoring a student whose school seems to spend an inordinate amount of time preparing students for standardized tests. First it was two days "reviewing" for a Galileo test. Now she says "we are not doing anything" but preparing for another standardized test, and this is taking several days. Along with "fall break"(two weeks) and "early release" Wednesdays, it is at least even money that she is learning more from me in one hour than she receives in a week in school.

If you have any doubts about the negative effects of High Stakes Testing, there are many others who agree with Barry Jackson. They also say it is counter-productive, expensive, wasteful, and it is also child abuse.

Did you happen to see this article by Steven Singer? More importantly, did PARENTS see it? Sure, school is hard. Kids complain. If they really, really complain, parents go to the teachers. Teachers reassure them. Principals and Superintendents reassure them. After all, they're the "experts," not parents. Kids are just "softer" than when we went to school. Right?

Wrong. Something is very, very wrong.

"Here’s a high stakes testing statistic you won’t hear bandied about on the news. The suicide rate among 10- to 14-year-olds doubled between 2007 and 2014 – the same period in which states have increasingly adopted Common Core standards and new, more rigorous high stakes tests. For the first time, suicide surpassed car crashes as a leading cause of death for middle school children. In 2014, the last year for which data was available, 425 middle schoolers nationwide took their own lives."

Yes, I'm supporting Frank Riggs for Arizona's next Superintendent of Public Instruction, and I'm downright enthusiastic about it. Why? Without a doubt, he's the most qualified. Also, he puts Students first, not the institution of public education. He respects and welcomes dialogue with Parents, not paid, self-interested lobbyists. He is a proven education leader for school choice, local control, and quality education. He believes that quality education means focusing on classroom teaching and learning, and on recruiting and retaining the very best teachers for Arizona’s kids. He has promised to advocate and work tirelessly for a high-quality education to help every child reach their full potential, regardless of where they live or their socio-economic circumstances. He also intends to make the Arizona Department of Education fully transparent, responsive, and accountable to parents, educators and taxpayers.

Please take a look at his website, and you'll see that not only does he "say" all the right things, but he has also "done" all the right things.

Frank Riggs has earned the endorsements of leaders and parents who want the education of Arizona's children to be the First Priority! See below for some of their statements about Frank Riggs, and then read his record of leadership, and you'll know why these dedicated people are fighting for Frank Riggs as Arizona's next Superintendent of Public Instruction:

Jared Taylor has stated this about Frank Riggs: "Frank Riggs is the most qualified candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction in Arizona’s history.” Not only is Mr. Taylor an anti-Common Core constitutional conservative serving as a Member of the State Board of Education and Gilbert Town Councilman, he is also the business manager for Heritage Academy. One of the missions of this charter school is to ensure that its students learn about the lives, beliefs, and accomplishments of the heroes of America – our founding fathers and mothers – and to better understand the values and principles which governed their lives and upon which they built the American nation.

Mr. Taylor is a leader of the Mommy Lobby, with whom I have been privileged to work for the last 6 years, focusing on defeating The Common Core Machine in Arizona.

An article published on April 28, 2017 in the Arizona Daily Independent, reports on a recent vote by the Arizona State Board of Education to use the results of Common Core-aligned AZMerit high stakes test to grade public schools.

Arizonans Against Common Core, Mommy Lobby AZ, and Opt Out AZ, released a statement after the vote: “Parents advocating for their children and teachers are dismayed by the A-F Accountability plan adopted by the Arizona State Board of Education. One high stakes test now accounts for 90% of a school’s letter grade. This decision reveals the SBE believes parents are incapable of selecting schools on their own. Few other factors matter to the state; however, parents make thoughtful school choices based on their own values, research, and judgment.”

So, the AZ. State Board of Education is using the controversial, unvalidated, one-size-fits all, secretive, high stakes AZ Merit to “evaluate” every public school in Arizona. The only people who have seriously donned their thinking caps are SBE board member Jared Taylor, Choice Academies president Ms. Lisa Fink, and commentators “Listen to a Mom” and Edward Cizek. The letter grade a school receives using AZ Merit scores as the most critical criteria, will be useless to parents. Do the board members actually believe otherwise? What a waste of time, effort, and money. Ms. Fink, who is quoted extensively, uses Consumer Reports as an example of what truly passes for an evaluation of a product. I would add that we use far more criteria evaluating the nutritional value of canned soup and cereal.